Not All Scars Are Bad
by Elessara91
Summary: Ichiruki One shot. The topic is scars. Ichigo tells Rukia that not all his scars are bad.


**A/N: I think I wrote this as a drabble on tumblr for a friend and never posted it on here. So I thought I should post it on here for everyone!**

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The night air flowed through the room through the opened window, a pair of small dainty feet perched precariously on the sill. The moon light shining softly past her and gently outlining the shadows of the sleeping boy's face. 'Is he really a boy though? After all he's been through…Ichigo is more a man then a boy now….and it's my fault…" She closed her eyes, stemming the hateful thoughts that followed after. Even after all they had been through and said to each other, Rukia would never be able to shake off the guilt that she had altered his life. That it had been her fault Ichigo had to suffer the way that he did. She couldn't seem to shake that guilt. His face looked so peaceful when he slept. There were no wrinkles of worry. No fire of battle in his eyes. Just calm, peaceful innocence. "Like a child…even though he's a man…he's still just like little boy…"

Rukia stepped lithely down and stood next to his bed. She would never have done this if he was awake but right now, he was asleep…deeply asleep. No one would ever have to know. She bent down and studied his face more closely. She could see now where the lines usually were. The worry creases. The crinkles by his eyes when he smiled. The scars running down his neck and shoulders. It looked like Ichigo had decided to sleep without a shirt on tonight. With a soft blush on her cheeks, she gently pulled the blanket down to his waist, revealing his muscular torso. She could clearly see the scars that crisscrossed down his chest, softly reflected in the moonlight. Rukia followed them with her eyes, remembering each battle they came from. The worst ones, she noted, were from his first battles. The ones he fought to save her. "My fault." She whispered again. She took a gentle finger and ran it down the length of one scar, barely grazing the skin with her fingertip. His nose wrinkled slightly in his sleep but Ichigo did not open his eyes. Rukia resisted the immediate "aw" that came to mind when he resembled a rabbit twitching its nose. She focused upon a second scar that ran down the length of his chest. "This one…was from Ni-Sama." She could feel her violet eyes shimmering as she recalled seeing him after that battle. So weak…he could barely stand. She traced yet another scar on his muscular body. This one… Rukia bit her lip as a lone tear slid down her cheek. "This one…was from Grimmjow. " Rukia could remember that day clearly. Strange. It was the minute details that no one else would deem significant that she remembered most clear. She didn't remember everything the arrancar had said nor exactly how the fight had been played. But Rukia could picture his face perfectly. The way his eyes had widened as Grimmjow's hand ripped through her skin. She could see the panic in his eyes as she lay on the ground still. The fear in his face as he watched Orihime heal her. Rukia shook her head, bringing her thoughts back to the present. She felt her breath catch as she saw the single small white scar on his chest, near his heart. She recognized the shape of the scar. "Sode no shirayuki…" Rukia whispered. The scar she herself had given him the very first night they met. Rukia felt her eyes well up as silent tears slid down her face. The small droplets landing on Ichigo's bare skin as she shut her eyes, her fingers still over that scar. The one scar that started everything. The one scar that had changed his life. She closed her eyes, silently letting her tears fall. Something brushed her cheek, skin that was calloused, strong…yet with a gentle touch. Rukia opened her shimmering eyes to see Ichigo's eyes half open as he gently brushed her tears. He looked down and noticed her fingers still over that scar. Ichigo sat up slightly, lightly brushing away her tears while Rukia stared at him with wide eyes, the moonlight reflected in their violet color.

"Rukia..." He whispered his voice still thick with sleep. He put his other hand over her smaller one, holding it over that scar. "You wanna know something midget?" He smiled softly. "This one…is my favorite…it reminds me every day of how I met the only person who could stop the rain in my heart. I wouldn't trade it or any of the others for anything in the world." Rukia was stunned, her eyes still shimmering as she stared wide eyed into Ichigo's eyes. "Rukia…without this scar, I would never have met you. How awful would that have been…living my whole life without my nakama….my soul mate…my love…" He pulled her close and gently brushed his lips against hers. "Will you let me stop the rain in your heart too? You only have to say the word…" He gazed up at her, a soft smile on his lips.

She smirked, blinked away the tears in her eyes as she captured his lips again. "Baka." She whispered.

Ichigo's smile widened. "That's the word." He grinned holding her and lying back on the bed. "Scars aren't all that bad, you know."


End file.
